- ESL has dropped the details on the upcoming IEM Summer, revealing the groups and matches
- The organization has detailed the format and structure of the competition running through June 13
- A total of $250,000 in prize money is on the line for the taking
ESL has dropped more details about the forthcoming IEM Summer on June 3- 13. The groups and initial matches have been revealed.
Group and Details about ESL IEM Summer
IEM Summer by ESL is fast approaching, and we finally more details about the $250,000 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, which promises to be every bit as excited as advertised. Running from June 3 through June 13, the competition will gather some of the 16 foremost teams in the CS: GO ecosystem.
Fifteen of the participating teams for the event have been confirmed, and the 16th will be the winner of the ESL National Championships Global playoffs. ESL has tapped into world rankings to create two equally-balanced groups, finally revealing the make-up of the groups:
The event pulls in interesting names from the world of competitive Counter-Strike, including Gambit Esports, Team Vitality, Astralis, G2 Esports Complexity, and FunPlus Phoenix. Extra Salt and an unnamed franchise are also part of the roster. The opening games in each group presently looks as follows:
Group A
- Gambit vs. ESL NCGW
- Vitality vs. Complexity
- Astralis vs. FPX
- Extra Salt vs. G2
Group B
- Heroic vs. Imperial
- EG vs. Spirit
- NiP vs. OG
- Fnatic vs. Virtus Pro
What to Expect from ESL IEM Summer?
With so many great teams stepping into the crucible, we are likely to witness the amazing level of Counter-Strike once again. Astralis have hit a bit of a slump in their performance recently, with Gambit seemingly improving, making for a highly-contested Group A.
Another determining factor here will be how well teams adapt to Ancient, which will be replacing Train for the first time on the Active Duty map pool. The event will play in a double-elimination group stage format, with the top teams from each group making it to the semifinals.
As to the second and third-placed teams, they will have to battle their chance to make it forward in the event through the quarterfinals.
